The Sacramento Metropolitan Arts Commission (SMAC), in conjunction with the Sacramento City Council and County Board of Supervisors, announced today the winners of the District Awards Program (DAP). DAP is a program that allows the City and County to annually recognize and honor artists’ and arts organizations’ contributions to their communities and to their field. In photo from left to right (Iris Dimond, Rhyena Halpern, Marshall D. Bailey and Shonna McDaniels – photo credits: Larry Dalton, Photographer).
The City Council winners was presented by SMAC and the Council Members on Tuesday, July 19, 2011 at 6 pm in Council Chambers located at City Hall (915 I Street) in Sacramento. Mayor Kevin Johnson who presented his selection of the Mayor’s Award, noted, “This award program represents an important opportunity to recognize our outstanding arts community in Sacramento. For the Mayor’s city-wide award we considered many valuable arts groups, each contributing significantly to our quality of life in Sacramento. Ultimately, we chose to recognize La Raza Galeria Posada for its consistent excellence in programming.”
The Chair of the County Board of Supervisors Award will be presented by Board Chair Roberta MacGlashan who said, “I am so pleased to have this opportunity to recognize the California Musical Theatre as one of Sacramento’s oldest and most successful arts organizations for their decades of entertainment and service to our community.”
Chair of SMAC Carlin Naify and Executive Director of SMAC Rhyena Halpern will be present at each ceremony. “SMAC continues to works diligently to ensure that our Sacramento arts organizations are supported financially and recognized publicly for their great works. This award program represents an acknowledgment of this ongoing effort and we wish to thank our elected officials for their continued support,” said Naify.
The awards selection process was coordinated by SMAC Director Rhyena Halpern. SMAC commissioners nominated three artists or arts groups in each district and submitted them to the supervisors and council members for consideration; additionally 6 names were each submitted to the Mayor and Chair of the Board. The elected officials then chose a winner for their district. The nominees were selected by commissioners based on a process that evaluated artistic quality and community engagement.
This award recognition is similar to the Fellowship program SMAC offered for many years. Fellowships were awarded annually and honored artists of merit in seven different disciplines. However, due to budget reductions over the past 4 years, this program is no longer active. The DAP program was recently created in the spirit of the Fellowship program to offer important recognition to the artists and arts organizations that enrich their communities through their artistic contributions.
This year’s DAP winners follow. Of note is that La Raza Galeria Posada garnered two awards at the City. The Pacific Rim Festival was selected by both the County and City (one for the organization and one for its leader):
City
Mayor’s Award for the City of Sacramento
La Raza Galeria Posada
District 1, Councilmember Ashby
Very Special Arts of California, Sacramento
District 2, Councilmember Sheedy
Kuumba Collective Art Gallery
District 3, Councilmember Cohn
La Raza Galeria Posada
District 4, Councilmember R Fong
Sacramento Shakespeare Festival
District 5, Councilmember Schenier
Instituto Mazatlán Bellas Artes de Sacramento
District 6, Councilmember McCarty
Sacramento Area Emergency Housing Center
District 7, Councilmember D Fong
Pacific Rim Street Festival
District 8, Vice Mayor Pannell
Sojourner Truth Multicultural Arts Museum
County
Chair’s Award for the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors
California Musical Theatre
District 1, Supervisor Serna
Armando Cid (in memory), Washington Square Apartments
District 2, Supervisor Yee
Bernadette Chiang, for her leadership and contribution to the Pacific Rim Festival
District 3, Supervisor Peters
Chautauqua Playhouse
District 4, Chair MacGlashan
Fair Oaks Theatre Festival
District 5, Supervisor Nottoli
David Peterson, Franklin Boulevard Plein Aire Project
